[JAPN2]

The tragic death of Sarah Cafferkey seems to point to yet another violent death of a woman at the hands of someone who may have a previous history.

http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/man-serv...1119-29m9x.html

Yesterday a woman was shot dead in Melbourne alledgedly by a man known to her

http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/shooting...1120-29mum.html

How many more women have died this year at the hands of someone known to them or to someone already previously convicted of violent crimes?

What can be done?

Your thoughts...

This post has been edited by JAPN2: 20/11/2012, 07:55 AM

[nano-tyrannus]

Last week there were actually two women in melbourne who were missing:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-11-12/melb...missing/4367746

[haras1972]

Not sure that anything can be done really. That's the consequence of living in a society - not everyone is following the same rule book. Extremely sad, and I feel for Sarah's family, and also for Jacqueline Mathews family - this must be ripping open old wounds.

And PP, both of those woman have been found, and they are safe.

[ellebelle]

Yes - I've been pondering what can be done too and all I can come up with is some volunteering at a shelter. It makes me so mad that this occurs. I'm sure many of us would think "there but for the grace of God go I" after considering certain careless (in hindsight) actions from our youth.

[causeway]

This is just tragic! I count Sarah Cafferkey's father as my friend, a mentor. This is just unbelievable! There are no words of comfort to offer, just the uncomfortable knowledge of the events which have just occurred! My heart aches for her Mum, Dad & siblings. I find this just unfathomable! What possesses someone to do something like this?

[MakeLoveNotBacon]

It's scary isn't it? Sometimes I wish we the legal system of the USA which seems to give much harsher sentences. A man who kills like that, and then goes on to have other charges of kidnap and sexual offences, is better off in jail for life (real 'life', not our 10-20 years) I believe everyone has the right to be rehabilitated but perhaps some cases can't be. And our system of rehabilitation is pretty pathetic anyway. The man spent 15 years in jail and came out to do the exact same thing.

[FoxyRetro*Gal]

'It is believed Hunter served only 12 years of his sentence, and that he has subsequently been convicted of other crimes, including kidnapping and sex offences'

He does only 12 years for viciously murdering a young woman & callously disposing of her body. There is something very wrong with that.
Gets out early and commits various other serious offences and is free to walk amongst us. Now possibly involved in another murder and who knows what else in between.

An all too familiar scenario. I think there needs to be tougher sentencing for starters.

[SarahM72]

It's scary isn't it? Sometimes I wish we the legal system of the USA which seems to give much harsher sentences. A man who kills like that, and then goes on to have other charges of kidnap and sexual offences, is better off in jail for life (real 'life', not our 10-20 years) I believe everyone has the right to be rehabilitated but perhaps some cases can't be. And our system of rehabilitation is pretty pathetic anyway. The man spent 15 years in jail and came out to do the exact same thing.

I'm not sure that the USA is any safer than Australia despite their harsher sentences? And the trouble is that we don't have a system of rehabilitation. It is a system of punishment, which at times may masquerade as a system of rehabilitation. But if we are truthful with ourselves it must be admitted that we send people to jail because we want to punish them. What we currently have is a system where already damaged people go into jail, and emerge even more damaged.

I would hate to live next door to someone who has been released from an Australian jail. They have learned terrible things whilst incacerated.

I would much prefer a system where prisoners are treated as people, and given something worthwhile to do and treated with dignity. Where they are never punished or treated harshly. While this goes against what we seem to want as individuals (I seriously would want to see a person punished who hurt any of my children for example) I think we need to consider society as a whole. We are not a society who locks people up forever. So prisoners are going to have to rejoin society one day. I don't want them to come out as angry, even more damaged people. I want them to come out as better people, who have been treated kindly, perhaps for the first time in their lives, and in return learned some kindness. In this way I imagine they would emerge better people, who I wouldn't be so scared to live next door to.

Perhaps something like this:
http://theweek.com/article/index/212738/pr...hout-punishment

This post has been edited by SarahM72: 20/11/2012, 09:48 AM

[JediMindTrick]

The tragic death of Sarah Cafferkey seems to point to yet another violent death of a woman at the hands of someone who may have a previous history.

http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/man-serv...1119-29m9x.html

Yesterday a woman was shot dead in Melbourne alledgedly by a man known to her

http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/shooting...1120-29mum.html

How many more women have died this year at the hands of someone known to them or to someone already previously convicted of violent crimes?

What can be done?

Your thoughts...

My bold is what gets me. Why are these people allowed out of prison?
It's highly worrying that people like this are allowed out at all. Raping 11 women and children in a 10 month period should be a life sentence. It's not just the murderers that are of concern, repeat sexual violence is heading down the same road IMO. I don't think rehabilitation in these circumstances would work and their freedom ends up at the expense of someone else life - either literally or emotionally and physically.

[MakeLoveNotBacon]

I'm not sure that the USA is any safer than Australia despite their harsher sentences?

Yes very true.

I'm too old and cynical to believe we'll ever have a system like in your post Sarah. I agree it's the right way to go though. I've never understood our system of punishment and then letting them back out with very little support. How is that going to end in anything but failure?